Hannibal: Rome's Bloodthirsty Ruler

Martin Luther, an American civil rights activist, once said, “If there is hell, Rome is built on it.” For centuries ancient Rome has suffered and survived the reign of numerous political leaders. Rome’s political history is intricate, bloody and filled with various rulers and enemies. Among Rome’s countless enemies, Hannibal Barca, general of the Carthaginian army, has stood out as monstrously cruel. Rome has accused Hannibal of sacrificing children to the gods, whipping innocent wives and children and destroying all who dared cross his path. However, Hannibal may not be quite as monstrous as Caligula, one of Rome’s most sadistic rulers. Caligula, Rome’s bloodthirsty ruler presented more brutality and bloodshed that Hannibal, the great Carthaginian

in Carthage, Africa, as the son of Hamilcar Barca. Hamilcar was an amazing Carthaginian general with only one goal, defeat and conquer Rome. As a young boy, Hannibal was exposed to war, blood, gore,and death. According to the History Channel documentary Ancients Behaving Badly, Hannibal had to dip his hands into warm blood bathe in it. Hannibal quickly learned to harden his heart and learn that life was worthless. After his father’s death, Hannibal makes his father’s hate for Rome, his own. Hannibal adopts it and strives to complete his gruesome goal in whatever way he can. At the age of thirty, he leads an army of 50,000 soldiers and 37 elephants, to destroy Rome. By the time Hannibal’s army had reached Rome, half of his soldiers had died from freezing temperatures and cholera. Hannibal’s obsession had taken a religious aspect, validating his goal to destroy Rome, unfortunately, his obsession kills almost half his army. This is only the beginning of Hannibal’s obsessive and goal oriented

Caligula’s bloodthirsty behavior is believed to be brought on by lead poisoning. Defrutum, a wine sweetener, was made in pots that contained lead, enough lead to permanently cause brain damage if consumed at high levels. Lead poisoning can cause numerous behavioral issues, such as impulsiveness, hyperactivity, and mood swings, however, it does not take into account Caligula’s behavior. Hannibal was traumatized as a young child by his own father. In the documentary Ancients Behaving Badly, David Mallott, an analytical psychiatrist explains that Hannibal,“ he’s [Hannibal] going to toughen up, harden up, he’s [Hannibal] going to learn life is cheap. He’s [Hannibal] like a child soldier.” Hannibal only has one goal in life, ruin Rome, and he truly tries to complete his goal, even if it means costing people their lives. According to the History Channel Documentary Ancients Behaving Badly, Hannibal scores very high on a mental obsessiveness scale. He is a goal driven killer and can be compared to William Wallace, a Scottish warlord who’s only goal in life was to destroy the English. According to the same documentary, Caligula scores very high on a psychopathic scale and suffers from Narcissistic Personality Disorder. Hannibal’s murderous behavior is inexcusable but Caligula’s horrendous sexual and emotional perversions surpasses Hannibal’s